Along with safety, Volvo is known for its estate cars. While the brand might have moved into new areas with its ever-growing range of upmarket SUVs, the firm hasn鈥檛 forgotten about its core products. The latest to join the line-up is the mid-sized premium V60 estate. This is a car that offers class, practicality, efficiency, tech and performance; an appealing package then. But there are already a number of rival models delivering exactly this combination, and the Audi A4 Avant is a perfect example. Audi also has a long history with estates, and in this closely fought class the V60 faces a fight to overcome its German rival. While SUVs are the niche that鈥檚 now become the norm, they鈥檙e not for everyone and family estate cars like these are generally better to drive than their higher-riding alternatives. The victor here will have to deliver exactly this, but mix it with a useful level of usability.
Let鈥檚 find out which is the stronger choice. With an almost totally new product line-up that鈥檚 mainly focused on a new range of SUVs, Volvo has now turned its attention to what it鈥檚 always been known for: estates. This V60 is set to take on the likes of the Audi A4 Avant, but does it do so more convincingly? We鈥檙e testing a 拢40,860 V60 D4 Auto in Inscription Pro trim to find out. Overall, the V60鈥檚 long wheelbase gives a nice, balanced feel to how the suspension responds to bumps. It smothers most surface changes, so only the harshest of ridges impact refinement. You feel the road, but the chassis doesn鈥檛 crash; it鈥檚 relaxed and matches the level of calm inside. On 19-inch wheels the V60鈥檚 ride only occasionally felt ruffled by scars in the road surface. There鈥檚 enough agility, too. The light steering doesn鈥檛 even offer as much communication as the Audi鈥檚, but the weight actually matches the rate of response and the steering feels free.
There鈥檚 little friction and despite the comfort it offers, the chassis will grip tenaciously and for longer than you might expect. This also helps to deliver a planted, secure feeling through quicker corners, and all this combines to give a tangible sense of solidity on the move. Volvo鈥檚 D4 motor and eight-speed automatic gearbox combination is a known quantity, and it works as well as ever in the V60. Despite the car鈥檚 extra mass, with one extra ratio in its gearbox to cover a similar speed range, the Volvo and the A4 Avant were equally matched at our test track. There was very little to split them for in-gear performance, too; what might be more important is refinement. The V60 is serene at low speeds. The transmission shuffles its ratios imperceptibly and the engine gently whirrs away. However, full-throttle is a different story, because the motor becomes more intrusive and the gearbox a little jerkier in its movements.
It鈥檚 no worse than the A4, though. Still, it鈥檚 the Volvo鈥檚 comfort and refinement that define the driving experience, which is strong. Testers鈥?notes: 鈥淪ometimes you get a feel from a car where everything works in harmony. Audi鈥檚 A4 Avant will provide a tough test for the Volvo V60. The recipe is very similar, and we鈥檙e putting a top-spec 拢39,985 A4 Avant 2.0 TDI S tronic Black Edition (our pictures show a 3.0) up against the V60. It鈥檒l be fine margins that separate them, but which will take the win? The A4 Avant doesn鈥檛 seem to have the Volvo鈥檚 easy-natured approach to tackling rough ground. It鈥檚 comfortable, but even in the softest setting the dampers don鈥檛 give the Audi as light a touch on the road. The A4 lumbers a little more, but it certainly feels solid and planted; these factors mean it is the more agile car. With more precise steering and grip, the Audi changes direction with greater alertness and agility than the Volvo. It stays flat through corners, too, but even when unloaded, this resistance to roll doesn鈥檛 make the A4 feel overly stiff.
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